eBay (EBAY) has had a nice year as the shares have gone from $19 to $29. Big drivers have been PayPal and the mobile business. But another key has been acquisitions.

Even as the year closes, eBay is still striking deals. The latest one came today: the purchase of brands4friends. Based in Germany, this is an online private shopping club for fashion sales. The price tag was roughly $200 million.

Continue reading eBay Gets a Private Shopping Club in ... Germany

eBay Gets a Private Shopping Club in ... Germany originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 20 Dec 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

eBay, Inc. (EBAY), the major name in online auctions, is down nearly 7% as I write this. Volume is extremely strong. A bad reaction to the latest earnings report is responsible for all the selling. Is the pullback an opportunity?

It's always difficult to buy a pullback, isn't it? A significant one like 7% is particularly difficult. You have to wonder if your bullish belief is on the mark or completely and utterly wrong. In the last twelve months, eBay has been trending higher. And it wasn't too long ago that the stock hit a 52-week high.

Continue reading eBay: Buy or Sell After Earnings Report?

eBay: Buy or Sell After Earnings Report? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 22 Apr 2010 17:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN), simply put, had a quarter to die for, the kind that all shareholders have on their wish lists. The Q3 numbers, which were released on Thursday after the bell, speak for themselves. Net sales: up 28%. Operating income: up 62%. Per-share profit: up 67% to 45 cents. Free cash flow for the trailing twelve months: up 98%. Yep, Amazon's fundamentals seem to be heading in the right direction.

According to our earnings preview, Wall Street was on record as wanting to see 33 cents per share on the bottom line. Amazon's management did a fine job of supplying further evidence to the market that the company's online business model is not only here to stay, but that it should provide shareholders with a significant amount of value over time.

Continue reading Amazon's third quarter is just what shareholders wanted

Amazon's third quarter is just what shareholders wanted originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 23 Oct 2009 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Online auction giant eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY), a business that counts Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) and Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) as related companies, was not popular in Wednesday's after-hours session. The third-quarter report just didn't do it for Wall Street, so Wall Street decided to make some trouble and bring the per-share price of the stock down by 4.5%. Oh sure, the company beat earnings by the most famous amount there is -- the proverbial penny -- but, according to this Bloomberg piece, guidance was not so inspiring.

The top line was actually pretty cool. Net sales saw an increase of 6%. Unfortunately, the bottom line couldn't take advantage of such growth. On an adjusted basis, net income dropped 16% to 38 cents per diluted share. And, as I just said, that was one penny ahead of the analysts.

Continue reading eBay sees declines in profit and operating margin in Q3

eBay sees declines in profit and operating margin in Q3 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Stock offering sinks GSI Commerce

Stock offering sinks GSI Commerce originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Amazon gets big upgrade

Amazon gets big upgrade originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 08 Jul 2009 16:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Retail spending at the "bricks-and-mortar" level has not been growing really fast for several years. E-commerce, often an easier way to shop and compare prices, has had double-digit growth since Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) became a retail force and big store chains like Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) moved online.

Everyone knows that e-commerce growth faltered in November and early December. There was hope that a last minute rush from people who wanted this holiday to be a "last hurrah" would save e-commerce spending from being a total bust. Things have not turned out that way, which says a great deal about how bad this holiday season really is, at least on the retail side of things.

According to comScore, online sales were only up 1% from early December through December 19, hitting $12.849 billion. Sales on "Cyber-Monday" were hardly impressive at $846 million. Two sales days this year have topped that. The categories which have really be slaughtered are music, movies, and video and jewelry and watches. The first category does not make much sense, since songs and movies are not terribly expensive. Perhaps they tend to be bought by younger people who may be more financially pinched than their parents.

Continue reading No recovery in online spending

No recovery in online spending originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 22 Dec 2008 09:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN), which competes with the e-commerce segments of companies such as Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO), eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY), Time Warner's (NYSE: TWX) AOL, and Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), closed on Wednesday at $49.99. After hours, it plunged to $42.98, a drop of 14%, following its earnings report. Actually, I didn't think the numbers were that bad. Sales increased 31%, and earnings per share came in at 27 cents per share on a diluted basis. That performance represented a growth rate of 42%, and it was 2 cents ahead of Wall Street expectations.

As you can imagine, though, it's the fear of what lies ahead that's put pressure on Amazon's stock. Management has stated it intends to carefully assess its investment priorities. The economy is getting worse, and all retailers, online or brick-and-mortar, from Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) to Target (NYSE: TGT), are going to feel the sting of the careful-spending consumer.

Amazon is going to continue doing what it does best: namely, keep its corporate head to the ground and process those holiday orders. But I have to wonder if there is an opportunity here. If the economy is headed for further disaster, perhaps precipitated by the negative wealth effect (i.e., people becoming less inclined to spend due to their shrinking net worths), then Amazon might be able to persuade them that online shopping at its website is the way to go. Not only will it save on fuel costs, but the company offers free shipping on orders that meet a certain price threshold. That might beat a trip to the mall.

Continue reading Amazon: Where do the company and stock go from here?

Amazon: Where do the company and stock go from here? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 23 Oct 2008 08:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

eBay, Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY), which competes with Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), Yahoo!, Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO), and Google, Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), reported earnings for the third quarter on Wednesday. Net revenue increased 12% to $2.1 billion. Earnings on an adjusted basis were $0.46 per diluted share versus $0.41 per diluted share in the similar quarter one year ago. That was good for an 11% growth rate.

As I pointed out in my earnings preview, the call was for $0.41 per share. So eBay easily beat Wall Street's analytical wizards. But, in this market, it's all about the forward guidance. It just doesn't matter anymore, the economy is tanking, and traders are selling things off left and right. According to this source, management has lowered the full-year outlook for earnings to a range between $1.69 and $1.71 per share as opposed to a previous expectation of achieving earnings between $1.72 and $1.77. This is bad news, of course, but eBay did manage to increase its operational cash flow. Net cash from operations went up by 10%, coming in at $693 million. So there's that, at least.

It isn't enough, though. eBay looks like it's going to have a rough time along with the economy. Its stock may be cheap, and management may be repurchasing shares (eBay took back 25 million shares during the Q3), but it isn't a buy unless you're a very long-term investor. eBay closed down over 13% during regular trading hours on Wednesday, and was down another 3.5% during the after-hours session. I can't see why the stock won't be heading lower. Again, if you've always wanted to be in eBay, this is probably a decent enough price on a valuation basis for those with a long-term horizon, but I would imagine that any guidance is at risk now considering recent economic data. That means even better valuations may be ahead.

Disclosure: I don't own any company mentioned; positions can change at any time.

After earnings report, I'm not buying eBay originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 16 Oct 2008 12:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

According to a report from the 451 Group, the third quarter was horrible for tech M&A. With the financial crisis, it's tough to get buyers interested in deals.

But, today we got some relief; that is, eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) agreed to shell out $820 million in cash for Bill Me Later. In fact, the company also paid $390 million for bilbasen.dk, which is a leading classifieds operator in Denmark.

At the same time, eBay plans to slash 10% of the workforce (amounting to about 1,000 employees). With an impending global recession, the environment is likely to be pretty bad for consumer platforms.

Thus, with the Bill Me Later transaction, there may be some traction -- especially with the PayPal business. But again, eBay will need to demonstrate skill with integration (which can be particularly tough in the tech world). Besides, eBay's M&A track record has been spotty, specially since its Skype deal.

Bill Me Later will certainly be costly. While the company is growing quickly, its revenue is only $150 million. Besides, the deal will dilute eBay's 2009 earnings by 6 cents to 13 cents per share. Also, might the credit crunch result in some problems for Bill Me Later?

More importantly, eBay announced that revenue will be at the low end of its forecast for Q3. In other words, the company realizes it needs to make some big moves to keep up the momentum.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He is also the founder of BizEquity, a valuation website

eBay tries again . . . with a big acquisition originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 06 Oct 2008 10:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Mastercard's master plan is working originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 19 Jun 2008 13:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Ebay Q1: Strong quarter, so-so outlook. Earnings call highlights.

Ebay Q1: Strong quarter, so-so outlook. Earnings call highlights. originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 16 Apr 2008 20:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

eBay

eBay buying Fraud Sciences originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 28 Jan 2008 09:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Dell (NASDAQ: DELL) wants to sell PCs at retail outlets, but it does not want to take away some of the customers who buy its products on the internet. And the company can't have it both ways.

According to The Wall Street Journal, "As Dell broadens from just selling its wares directly over the internet and by phone, it risks siphoning off its web customers, who represent the majority of its consumer sales."

Taking such a gradual approach may hurt the company. Most of Dell's competitors, including HP (NYSE: HPQ) and Lenovo, offer a very broad set of products through most consumer electronics retailers. Even Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) now sells though some large stores.

Since Dell is losing market share to most of the other large PC manufacturers, its philosophy of holding back some of its product line is puzzling. HP is now the leading vendor of computers in the U.S., and recent research shows that Apple is picking up substantial market share.

Trying to decide which products will be offered to consumers at retail and which will be seen only on Dell's website seems to be a complex formula that may only result in lower sales.

The consumer wants what he wants when he wants it. Making it harder for him to buy is a bad idea.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Dell's retail conundrum originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 03 Jan 2008 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

On so-called "Cyber Monday," another record was broached, as U.S. online shoppers clicked-up $733 million in sales. Some of the top performers included Wal-Mart (NASDAQ: WMT), Dell (NASDAQ: DELL), Target (NYSE: TGT), and Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN).

These are the big players. But I'm sure there could have been even more sales, had smaller online venues been able to keep up in terms of technology and customer service. In other words, e-commerce sites can still be complex -- enough to foil would-be buyers, and resulting in abandoned virtual shopping carts.

How can you improve your online store?

Continue reading Entrepreneur's Journal: Cranking out more cash from e-commerce

Entrepreneur's Journal: Cranking out more cash from e-commerce originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 01 Dec 2007 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Online shopping deals on the rise originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 13 Nov 2007 12:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Any savvy eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) seller will tell you that oftentimes items sell better together. For instance, a set of 1959 Topps baseball cards would likely fetch more than the individual cards.

But other times, especially in the case of items that aren't really related, you'll get more listing them separately. For instance, The Backstreet Boys new CD probably wouldn't sell well packaged with Kurt Cobain's Journals.

Given the wide variety of business that eBay now has under its umbrella -- Skype, PayPal. StubHub, and others -- some are suggesting that it might be time for eBay to split itself up, or at least divest a few non-core assets. According to The Wall Street Journal [subscription]:

So why aren't investors giving eBay proper credit? Ms. Whitman's big $3.1 billion purchase of Skype and subsequent need to write-down that business's value left a lingering impression that she is an empire builder. One way to show that isn't the case would be to push some of eBay's businesses out of the tent.

PayPal might find independence handy. Rivals Amazon or Google might reconsider their aversion to using Paypal's services if it wasn't run by a competitor. Spinning it off or selling a stake in a public offering also might reduce the conglomerate discount attached to eBay. Selling may not be as fun as shopping, but it usually is more lucrative.

Should eBay split itself up? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 07 Nov 2007 15:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Gallery: The Wal-Mart Way -- how bad could it be?

Can even Wal-Mart succeed at online grocery shopping? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 26 Oct 2007 15:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading SpiralFrog's free music: Should Apple (AAPL) worry?

SpiralFrog's free music: Should Apple (AAPL) worry? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 18 Sep 2007 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY)'s decision to double its borrowing capacity is being interpreted, for the most part, as a positive move that could be the prelude to a potential material event - a special dividend payout, a share buyback, or merger & acquisition.

But before you run out to place an immediate buy order for EBAY, which traded 47 cents lower to $35.53 late Monday afternoon, here are a few points of caution that encourage one to reflect before parting with one's earned cash.

-First there is the online auction space: there's discussion in online and e-commerce circles that the online auction space is approaching saturation - or at least is going through a period of stagnation - in the developed world markets [primarily North America and Europe]. For one, convenient short-hand barometer of this, the reader can scan the covers Time or Newsweek magazine. Q: When was the last time eBay or a comparable auction site was featured as "the rage" on the cover, the way, for example, the iPod has been? Also, can you think of 2 or 3 industry sources who make reference to "the burgeoning / exploding-growth online auction space"? Further, with the developed markets likely to register less-than-moonshot growth results in the immediate years ahead, it remains an open question whether eBay and other sites can replace double-digit growth with Asia-based [particularly China-based] growth.

-Second, and equally significant, there is the current stock market, which those in the Concrete Canyon refer to as "the current equity market climate." Frequently, share buybacks are interpreted as positive events for companies and shareholders, as they're often viewed as a company seizing the day to buyback its undervalued shares - shares that are at a bargain price. Still, investors need to keep in mind that a company's buyback decision looks good only if, in fact, the company's shares were undervalued. If, in fact, the shares continue to fall, the decision will not look so good.

Have you seen eBay's price recently, say since mid-2005? It's not up. That fact, combined with the facts that the U.S. stock market is long overdue for a 10% correction, that correction may have already started, real interest rates and credit risk premiums are rising, oil prices remain at near-record levels despite oil producers' willingness to sell every drop, the U.S. economy may be slowing, and that the U.S. Federal Reserve shows few signs that it will lower short-term interest rates soon, present an environment that will make it hard for many stocks to rise - headwinds you may wish to contemplate before plunking down that cold, hard cash right now on eBay.

Think hard before betting on eBay (EBAY) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 13 Aug 2007 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.